Cursive-The Power of Connected Writing PART 6

PART 6: A good method (print letters) going head-to-head with a better method (cursive)

Cursive in Particular

What are the benefits of cursive over block-letter manuscript writing? In the 1970s, a researcher (Early, 1976, cited in Montgomery) pushed cursive writing early on, and always. The research interpretation assumed that as each word is connected from beginning to end by a single line, children experience the total form or shape of each word as part of a totality of movement. This sounds fancy, but what it really means is the spelling of a word is part of a flowing experience that improves spelling and literacy (Montgomery, 134). 

UK experiments in teaching cursive from the outset of writing education – UK education moved away from cursive first in the mid-1900s – found that cursive had a real-world effect in helping children meet standardized writing targets “earlier and for a larger number of children” (Montgomery citing Low, 1990 and Morse, 1990, p134). Another assumption simply based on a reading of history of education in early 20th century England and America is that cursive could be learned by young children with no more challenges than those met in learning to form print letters. This, then, is a huge point in favor of cursive – if children can learn it as easily as print AND it leads to real cases of more children meeting learning goals earlier, then why should cursive not be preferred over printing as the first handwriting method learned?